Rare 20-plus-point deer caught on camera in Monroe County

Eddie Kiser wasn't sure what his trail camera had taken a picture of on that October day.

MIKE KUHNS

Eddie Kiser wasn't sure what his trail camera had taken a picture of on that October day.

It was a deer and it had antlers, but not like any he had seen before.

"I just freaked out, kind of," Kiser, 25, said of his initial reaction.

The Oct. 24 photo shows a whitetail buck, still in velvet, which is quite unusual for that time of year. Kiser has one photo of the Monroe County deer, which features a non-typical rack of at least 20 points.

It's a deer that Pennsylvania Game Commission biologist Kevin Wenner said was "extremely rare."

Bucks like this, Wenner said, are usually found in penned farms. Wenner said there are deer farms in Monroe County, but didn't know where they were specifically.

"That deer would be considered an anomaly," Wenner said. "It's something you seldom see."

About two or three years ago, Kiser's camera took a photo of a buck with unusual features in the same area. He since lost the photo and didn't think about the deer until his camera took a photo of the unusual buck this fall.

He archery hunted religiously for the deer, but never saw it.

"If it's the same deer from two or three years ago, he's eluded me for three years now," Kiser said.

"That buck didn't reach that size by being stupid," Wenner said.

Kiser has since filled his buck tag during the rifle season, but he can't get the image of this monstrous buck out of his head.

It's hard to blame him. Wenner said the PGC recovered a road-kill deer on Route 115 near Effort of a non-typical buck, but "it's not as impressive as the photo you have."

Wenner confirmed the deer appears to be healthy. An animal with any disease would not be capable of carrying those antlers, the biologist said.

Kiser said he wants to find the buck again, hoping to get a photo of the rare buck. He doesn't know if it has survived the hunting season so far.

If it has, Kiser is hoping he can track it down in 2014.

"This is a buck of a lifetime," Kiser said. "If I'm able to harvest this deer with a bow, it'll be the pinnacle of my hunting career and probably my life. I probably won't be able to look for or hunt for something like this. I may never see the deer, but it'll be neat to pursue."

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